Is Hewlett Services a legitimate company?

[Ben_43017]

About 3+ weeks ago, I had a problem with my wife's printer.  It turned out that there was a problem with the driver and I had malware and a virus on my computer.  I thought I was getting help from hp tech support.  It now appears that it was not an actual hp entity.  I got the issue resolved and paid for 5-year security (Webroot) and malware cleanup.  Now my Webroot license key has expired.  The company is Hewlett Services with this  I was told that they work from a California office.  Anyone know about them?  Are they legit?  They wanted to access my computer to check the license key issue, but I refused until I could do some checking.

[NonSequitur777 · Accepted solution]

@Ben_43017,

Welcome to our HP Community forum!

To me it sounds like you may have encountered a tech support scam. Hewlett Services is not an official HP company, and there's no known legitimate business by that name offering HP tech support. Scammers often pose as HP support agents to trick users into paying for unnecessary services or fake security software...

Red Flags in Your Case:

1. Misrepresentation: They claimed to be HP support, but HP does not operate under "Hewlett Services."

2. Selling Unverified Software: They charged you for Webroot security and malware cleanup, but now the license key has expired -which is unusual for a 5-year purchase. And btw, I have had Webroot SecureAnywhere for a number of years myself, and it is a wonderful anti-virus service.

3. Attempting Remote Access: The fact that they now want to access your computer again is highly suspicious. Many scams involve gaining remote control to install more malware or steal personal data.

 

What You Should Do: 

✅ Do not allow them access to your computer.
✅ Contact Webroot Support directly to check the legitimacy of your license key (Webroot’s official support page). If the license is invalid, you may have been sold a fraudulent key.
✅ Monitor your bank statements for unauthorized charges. If you paid via credit card, consider disputing the transaction.
✅ Run a full security scan with a trusted antivirus/malware tool (Microsoft Defender, Malwarebytes, etc.).
✅ If they call or email you again, ignore them. You can also report the scam to HP Support and, if necessary, to the FTC (U.S.) or local cybercrime authorities.

For future HP support, always use HP’s official website: https://support.hp.com to avoid scams.

Let me know if you need further guidance!

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777

[Ben_43017]

Thank you so much.  Your response could not have been more helpful.  I took the steps you recommended including notifying my credit card company.  I paid for this through PayPal so I submitted a request for a full refund to them.  With the request, I included excerpts from your response and attached a screen shot showing Webroot as expired.  Today I was notified that a full refund was in process.  Finally, I uninstalled the expired version of Webroot.  In response to their inquiry, I told them that it was provided under dubious circumstances and that it expired only a few weeks later.  Thank you again for your help.  This was a valuable lesson that I don't want to repeat, and I want to help others avoid.

[NonSequitur777]

@Ben_43017,

You are most welcome, and I am thrilled that things worked out for you!

I happen to have a particular dislike for perps who rip off good people.

Maybe that's why Jason Statham's movie "The Beekeeper" resonated with me -but I digress.

Wishing you well, my friend!

Kind Regards,

NonSequitur777